The first post in a new series on identifying birds by sound: To learn bird songs, it is first important just to notice bird sounds. Train yourself to hear them and to hear the differences. Take a minute periodically while you are birding to stop, relax, maybe close your eyes, and just listen. Don’t try […]
Learning to Listen to Bird Songs Read More »
When considering impressions of shape and size as in Optical illusions and bird identification or More on illusions of size, one important aspect that I’ve mentioned only in passing is relative size. Consider the two birds in the sketches below, which one has the longer bill? I suspect that viewers will say either “They’re about the
Relative size and proportions Read More »
I’ve just posted a complete list of French names for North American birds. This is the first step towards adding French names to the eGuide. Please let me know of any corrections. Thanks!
Bird names in French Read More »
The Blackberry app has been updated again today: Blackberry Update Version 4.1.0 – 7 Jun 2011 Blackberry-style theme (replaces “90′s DOS style” interface) Improved smart search Improved support for touch-enabled devices Improved support for native text auto-complete This follows an update on 27 May 2011 which included the following changes: Added “My Location” Global filter by
Blackberry eGuide updates Read More »
I’ve just updated the list of field identifiable subspecies incorporating several readers’ comments, adding notes on several species, and adding an asterisk to highlight the most distinctive subspecies (as determined by my own subjective and arbitrary review process). Thanks to all who have contributed. Please keep sending suggestions and comments.
Updated List of Identifiable Subspecies Read More »
A Korean translation of this post is here With the recent surge in the availability of digital audio devices, the use of playback to attract birds into view has increased exponentially. This has fueled an ongoing debate among birders about the ethical issues surrounding the use of recorded bird songs in the field. There is
The Proper Use of Playback in Birding Read More »
The Green-winged Teal (known as Common Teal in English-speaking parts of Eurasia) is currently considered a single species by the AOU, but two subspecies are distinctive in adult male plumage and are split into two species by many authorities. Green-winged Teal (American) – Anas crecca carolinensis Common Teal (Eurasian) – Anas crecca crecca ((Common Teal nests in
Distinguishing Green-winged and Common Teal Read More »
I was recently studying and sketching the three species of American scoters in Revere, Massachusetts, and I was struck by the differences in head and body shapes. I thought those differences deserved to be highlighted in some new sketches, which are shown below. If you enjoy quizzes, you can try to identify the three species,
Identifying scoters by shape Read More »
Possibly… Like most herons, the calls of Great Egret are always hoarse, unmusical croaks and groans. There are slight variations, however, and listening to the selection of recordings available at Xeno-canto suggests that there may be consistent differences between the American and Eurasian Great Egrets.
Can Old World and New World Great Egrets be distinguished by call? Read More »
Update, 26 Jan 2011: We have now filled the beta-tester slots. Thanks for the great response! The Sibley eGuide to Birds (for Blackberry) is ready for testing. We just need a few people to run it through the paces on some different Blackberry devices and tell us what works and what, if anything, doesn’t. All
Beta testers needed for Blackberry app Read More »